In this In Feb. 28, 2018, photo, diver and Force Blue Co-Founder Rudy Reyes handles a crate full of coral to replace corals ripped off the reef during Hurricane Maria, as part of a nearly $1.5 million coral reef restoration effort largely funded by the federal government, off the coast of Fajardo, Puerto Rico. The group is focusing on the island's northeast region, where swaths of mostly elkhorn and staghorn corals received the brunt of large swells generated during the hurricane. (Jim Hellemn via AP) less

In this In Feb. 28, 2018, photo, diver and Force Blue Co-Founder Rudy Reyes handles a crate full of coral to replace corals ripped off the reef during Hurricane Maria, as part of a nearly $1.5 million coral ... more

Photo: Jim Hellemn, AP

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In this In Feb. 28, 2018 photo, shows coral that was damaged during Hurricane Maria, off the coast of Fajardo, Puerto Rico. The U.S. government is financing a nearly $1.5 million project to help restore between 100 and 300 corals a day in Puerto Rico for two months. (Jim Hellemn via AP) less

In this In Feb. 28, 2018 photo, shows coral that was damaged during Hurricane Maria, off the coast of Fajardo, Puerto Rico. The U.S. government is financing a nearly $1.5 million project to help restore between ... more

Photo: Jim Hellemn, AP

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In this In Feb. 28, 2018 photo, Force Blue divers Angelo Fiore, right, Geoff Reeves, center, and Sean Griffin handle coral that will be used to replace other coral ripped off the reef during Hurricane Maria, as part of a nearly $1.5 million coral reef restoration effort largely funded by the federal government, off the coast of Fajardo, Puerto Rico. Armed with buckets of cement, the divers pick up the broken pieces and swim to reefs that have been identified as healthy despite the battering they received from the storm. (Jim Hellemn via AP) less

In this In Feb. 28, 2018 photo, Force Blue divers Angelo Fiore, right, Geoff Reeves, center, and Sean Griffin handle coral that will be used to replace other coral ripped off the reef during Hurricane Maria, as ... more

Photo: Jim Hellemn, AP

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In this In Feb. 28, 2018 photo, Force Blue Diver Angelo Fiore replants corals ripped off during Hurricane Maria as part of a nearly $1.5 million coral reef restoration effort largely funded by the federal government, off the coast of Fajardo, Puerto Rico. Fiore is part of a small group of Puerto Rican and international conservationists is working on rebuilding natural wonders destroyed by the strongest storm to hit the island in nearly a century. (Jim Hellemn via AP) less

In this In Feb. 28, 2018 photo, Force Blue Diver Angelo Fiore replants corals ripped off during Hurricane Maria as part of a nearly $1.5 million coral reef restoration effort largely funded by the federal ... more

Photo: Jim Hellemn, AP

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In this In Feb. 28, 2018 photo, a group of divers swim in a reef off the northeast coastal town of Fajardo, a popular destination for tourists eager to explore reefs that once boasted bright colors and a multitude of fish. The group is participating in a nearly $1.5 million project largely funded by the U.S. government to help restore between 100 and 300 corals a day in Puerto Rico for two months. (Jim Hellemn via AP) less

In this In Feb. 28, 2018 photo, a group of divers swim in a reef off the northeast coastal town of Fajardo, a popular destination for tourists eager to explore reefs that once boasted bright colors and a ... more

Photo: Jim Hellemn, AP

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In this March 2, 2018 photo, Luisa Rosado Seijo, manager of the ecological recovery program developed by Para la Naturaleza, a non-profit organization, makes a tour of one of the NGO's nurseries in the in Rio Piedras Botanical Garden, in San Juan, Puerto Rico. "This is a project where we really won't see the results," she said. "The results will be from now to 100 years." less

In this March 2, 2018 photo, Luisa Rosado Seijo, manager of the ecological recovery program developed by Para la Naturaleza, a non-profit organization, makes a tour of one of the NGO's nurseries in the in Rio ... more

Photo: Carlos Giusti, AP

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In this March 2, 2018 photo, dozens of Maria tree seedlings are grown at one of the nurseries in the in Rio Piedras Botanical Garden for Para la Naturaleza, a non-profit organization dedicated to the protection and conservation of land of high ecological value, in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Volunteers and workers tend to thousands of budding plants that will grow into trees as they're planted across the island. less

In this March 2, 2018 photo, dozens of Maria tree seedlings are grown at one of the nurseries in the in Rio Piedras Botanical Garden for Para la Naturaleza, a non-profit organization dedicated to the protection ... more

Photo: Carlos Giusti, AP

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FILE - In this Saturday, Sept. 30, 2017 file photo, the foundation of a heavily damaged house stands amid broken trees in the mountains after the passing of Hurricane Maria in the San Lorenzo neighborhood of Morovis, Puerto Rico. Environmental groups and volunteers are gathering native seeds to replant forests across the U.S. territory and grafting broken coral back onto shattered reefs to help repair damage in the largest-ever effort of its kind for Puerto Rico. less

FILE - In this Saturday, Sept. 30, 2017 file photo, the foundation of a heavily damaged house stands amid broken trees in the mountains after the passing of Hurricane Maria in the San Lorenzo neighborhood of ... more

Photo: Ramon Espinosa, AP

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In this March 2, 2018 photo, a bed of native oak tree seedlings is shown by Manuel Sepulveda, nursery management coordinator with Para la Naturaleza, a non-profit organization, in one of its nurseries in the in Rio Piedras Botanical Garden, in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Para la Naturaleza has planted nearly 1,900 trees since January, with a goal of 750,000 in the next seven years, said Luisa Rosado, the group's habitat manager. less

In this March 2, 2018 photo, a bed of native oak tree seedlings is shown by Manuel Sepulveda, nursery management coordinator with Para la Naturaleza, a non-profit organization, in one of its nurseries in the in ... more

Photo: Carlos Giusti, AP

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In this March 2, 2018 photo, Manuel Sepulveda, a nursery management coordinator with Para la Naturaleza, a non-profit organization, transplants several small native oak tree seedlings, in one of its nurseries in the in Rio Piedras Botanical Garden, in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Volunteers and workers tend to thousands of budding plants that will grow into trees as they're planted across the island. less

In this March 2, 2018 photo, Manuel Sepulveda, a nursery management coordinator with Para la Naturaleza, a non-profit organization, transplants several small native oak tree seedlings, in one of its nurseries ... more

Photo: Carlos Giusti, AP

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In this March 2, 2018 photo, Manuel Sepulveda, a nursery management coordinator with Para la Naturaleza, a non-profit organization, holds a couple of native oak seedlings, in one of its nurseries in the in Rio Piedras Botanical Garden, in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Para la Naturaleza has planted nearly 1,900 trees since January, with a goal of 750,000 in the next seven years, said Luisa Rosado, the group's habitat manager. less

In this March 2, 2018 photo, Manuel Sepulveda, a nursery management coordinator with Para la Naturaleza, a non-profit organization, holds a couple of native oak seedlings, in one of its nurseries in the in Rio ... more

Photo: Carlos Giusti, AP

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In this March 2, 2018 photo, Eugenia tree seeds are shown at a seed recovery area located at the Para la Naturaleza NGO's nursery in the in Rio Piedras Botanical Garden, in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Luisa Rosado, the group's habitat manager says that sometimes the NGO gets lucky and people call them, saying they uncovered seeds amid hurricane debris. less

In this March 2, 2018 photo, Eugenia tree seeds are shown at a seed recovery area located at the Para la Naturaleza NGO's nursery in the in Rio Piedras Botanical Garden, in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Luisa Rosado, ... more

Photo: Carlos Giusti, AP

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Crew with seeds, corals restore environment in Puerto Rico

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FAJARDO, Puerto Rico (AP) — As crews re-string electric lines and clear debris from Hurricane Maria, a small group of Puerto Rican and international conservationists is working on rebuilding natural wonders destroyed by the strongest storm to hit the island in nearly a century.

Environmental groups and volunteers are gathering native seeds to replant forests across the U.S. territory and grafting broken coral back onto shattered reefs to help repair damage in the largest-ever effort of its kind for Puerto Rico.

The Category 4 storm damaged 1.2 billion trees and snapped hundreds of thousands of corals off reefs around the island when it hit on Sept. 20. Despite the widespread destruction, a lack of funding and pressing human needs kept pushing back long-term plans to replant trees and rebuild corals.

Now that Puerto Rico is slowly regaining its footing after the storm and initial funding has been secured, conservationists are fanning out across the island and into its waters to repair and restore what's left of the island's flora.

"The damage is huge," said Nilda Jimenez, marine ecology director for the island's Department of Natural Resources.

Helping nature recover has environmental and economic importance: Puerto Rico's natural beauty is one of its biggest tourist draws. Experts also note that reefs protect coasts from heavy swells and serve as habitat for many species consumed on the island, including red snappers, lobsters and octopi.

Last week, a group of divers assembled on a dock in the northeast coastal town of Fajardo, a popular destination for tourists eager to explore reefs that once boasted bright colors and a multitude of fish. Now, hundreds of broken corals that are still alive lay scattered across the turquoise waters, ranging in size from a grapefruit to a car.

Armed with buckets of cement, divers pick up the broken pieces and swim to reefs that have been identified as healthy despite the battering they received from the storm. The divers brush away any algae that have built up and push the pieces down into the freshly laid cement.

"If you think about what you're seeing, it's broken animals," said Jim Ritterhoff, executive director of Force Blue, a nonprofit organization made up of retired U.S. Special Operations veterans working on coral reef conservation projects.

The group is participating in a nearly $1.5 million project largely funded by the U.S. government with help from the U.S. nonprofit organization Ocean Conservancy to help restore between 100 and 300 corals a day in Puerto Rico for two months. They are focusing on the island's northeast region, where swaths of mostly elkhorn and staghorn corals received the brunt of large swells generated during the hurricane. If further funding is available, divers will target other areas as well.

"The sooner we get out there, the better," said Sean Griffin, coral reef restoration ecologist with the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. "There are still tens of thousands of corals out there that are upside down or even just on their side that we can get out there and save."

Similar restoration efforts are taking place on land miles away from the divers.

At a greenhouse run by the nonprofit group Para La Naturaleza in the capital of San Juan, volunteers and workers tend to thousands of budding plants that will grow into trees as they're planted across the island. They have planted nearly 1,900 trees since January, with a goal of 750,000 in the next seven years, said Luisa Rosado, the group's habitat manager.

"This is a project where we really won't see the results," she said. "The results will be from now to 100 years."

It's also a labor-intensive project where crews have to return every three months to the site where the trees are planted to monitor their progress during the first year, then every four months in the second year. Rosado said more volunteers are needed, especially because the nonprofit is tied up visiting places around the island trying to find seeds for native and endemic species.

Sometimes they get lucky and people call them, saying they uncovered seeds amid hurricane debris. A man from the western mountain town of Lares recently brought in a 4-foot-tall bag filled with branches and leaves but also a tiny black seed known as aceitillo, which is now a rare species.